Psalm Challenge

Sunday, near the end of my message, I challenged everyone to pick a Psalm at random and read it. 

Then, keeping in mind our conversation about how the Psalms are poems, and about how poems are a collision of order and chaos, I asked you to share any observations along those lines - just a sentence or two - nothing elaborate.

So, I will be posting my observations to the Quest Facebook page shortly, so you can respond either there or here or both.

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I picked Psalm 27 totally at random, and here's what I found:

It starts with a boast of confidence in God - "Whom shall I fear? I will be confident even in the face of my enemies." But then, immediately he changes course and basically says, "One thing I seek - to have the safety and security of a relationship with God." 

This is a really good example of what we've been talking about. David's essentially saying, "God's got my back - so, I hope he's got my back." Lol.

He says, "My enemies don't have a chance," but then he says, "IF you take me in, God, my enemies will fall."

See, David's no different than us. If David can experience doubt, why do we think we won't?

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Okay, what did YOU find? Can't wait to hear...

Introducing ONRAMP

So, last Sunday, we let everyone know that we were changing the way we do midweek grouplife at Quest.

Instead of various types of meetings and whatnot, we're going to try an intentional disciplemaking approach called ONRAMP.

You can find details about upcoming ONRAMP gatherings and RSVP HERE.

But here's a brief description of how it will work…

Our lives are busy and chaotic, and it's hard to find time to slow down, take a deep breath, and consider big ideas. Our lives are so complex that we barely have time to think big - especially when it comes to God stuff. But the big ideas matter; God stuff matters. 

If you're like us, you've tried and tried to find a way to think more deeply about God stuff - blogs, Bible studies, small groups, Sunday school, online discussions - but it's a little like trying to parachute into the middle of a speeding interstate highway…

Enter ONRAMP.

ONRAMP is a safe way to exit your daily chaos and merge into the deeper streams of God.

You don't need to be a Bible scholar or a career theologian to understand this stuff. You just need to slow down and enter into conversation with others who are looking for the same things. It's not rocket science. That's why Jesus said, "My yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Join us at ONRAMP. Slow down. Have a drink. Think deep. Explore.

- - - - -

Without being a slave to structure, our ONRAMP gatherings will reflect the following values and hold to the following format:

VALUES

Dialog | Dependence | Discovery | Discipline

We'll value dialog.

No one person, not even the ONRAMP facilitator, will be allowed to dominate the conversation. This will be a discussion, not a lecture. And it'll be a safe place to share and self-discover.

We'll value dependence.

While this is a Christian-led exploration of Bible texts, we'll depend on the Spirit to "lead us into all truth." So we'll be less worried about correcting people than about encouraging the free exchange of ideas.

We'll value discovery.
We believe the writer of Hebrews, when he says, "The Word of God is alive and active." When we open the Bible and wrestle with its contents, truth will continually rise to the surface. And that's what we're looking for.

We'll value discipline.
We think following the Way of Jesus is an intrinsic good. And in order to do that in our busy lives, we need to develop habits and practices that help us follow him. We hope ONRAMP will be one of those practices.

- - - - -

FORMAT
At each gathering, we'll spend a few minutes breaking the ice and getting to know each other.

Then we'll use a predictable method to explore a particular passage from the Bible.

We'll read the passage aloud and then ask the following five questions:

• What does this tell us about God? 
• What does this tell us about people? 
• What else did we learn? 
• If we believe this is true, what might we do differently? 
• If we put this into practice, what would be the challenges/benefits? 

You’ll be amazed at how these five questions open up the text and draw insight from it.

Join us at ONRAMP!

Come as you are

Come as you are. This is Jesus' invitation.

The invitation was given by Jesus in the words recorded by his disciple Matthew:

“Then Jesus said, 'Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.'” Matthew 11:28-30 (NLT)

The invitation is also repeated in a song Quest frequently sings:

Come out of sadness from wherever you've been
Come broken-hearted, let rescue begin
Come find your mercy, O sinner, come kneel
Earth has no sorrow that Heaven can't heal

Hear the invitation of Jesus in the words of the song:

There's hope for the hopeless
And all those who've strayed
Come sit at the table; come taste the grace
There's rest for the weary
Rest that endures
Earth has no sorrow that Heaven can't cure

Of course Jesus' invitation is not to come as we are with all our problems, issues, and burdens, and just remain that way -- weary and heavy laden. No, the invitation is to lay down our burdens:

Lay down your burdens
Lay down your shame
All who are broken, lift up your face
O wanderer, come home; You're not too far
So lay down your hurt; lay down your heart
Come as you are

In the words of this passage (Jesus' words), you will find rest for your souls.

This is the way of Jesus: Come as you are but don't stay that way.

- Brian McMillan

The Biggest Threat

When I first joined Theology Pub, I did it to be edgy. 

I was launching a new church that I hoped would attract all the skeptical, hipster, twenty-somethings. And I hoped Theology Pub might be a doorway into that world.

It wasn’t. But, it turned out to be much more interesting than that.

Theology Pub meets in a pub, and is made up of folks who have both an interest in God-stuff and a membership in a web service called meetup.com. 

At first, I was just an attender. I showed up for the fireworks. It was thrilling to observe the conversational ebb and flow, and watch how some people moved the conversation forward, and others - either intentionally or accidentally - derailed it. 

But when I took the group over, I discovered how challenging it was to facilitate.

Theology Pub has been an awesome training ground for extending grace to those who believe differently. Over the past three years, we’ve had pagans, atheists, orthodox Jews, not-so-orthodox Jews, progressives, conservatives, gay, straight, agnostics, astrologers, wiccans, tea partiers, theologians, pastors, skeptics, seekers, and a few regular, old Christians.

This level of diversity makes it absolutely essential to state, up front, that, in this context, all views and opinions carry equal value. We’re not making any claims about the veracity of those opinions, only their relative value within this discussion space. If you don’t make this clear, fundamentalists will ruin everything. 

Since I took over, we’ve had three major threats - a preacher, a new-ager, and an atheist. All were fundamentalists. All attended under the pretense of open-mindedness. But they just couldn’t help themselves; they had to be right, and everyone else wrong.

With certainty, it seems, comes an appearance of arrogance; it seems to be a package deal. I tried to convince them to leave their certitude at the door, to no avail. So, I had to block them. They drove people away, and nearly killed the group.

When facilitating a group like this, it is paramount that you make room for differences of opinion, affirm even ideas that you find peculiar, and shut down certainty. 

In fact, I consider it a badge of honor that a first-time attender once asked me, “Do you believe anything?” I do; but I was tickled that she wasn’t sure. 

You’ll be tempted to answer every question - to be “the certain one” - but consider that your Q Place might be the very first time a person has stopped to think through what they believe. And when that happens, it’s beautiful.

Because, the whole point of a group like this is that, when you make room for self-discovery, you create space for the Holy Spirit to do His work. He will use you to show how He loves. He will use you to protect those who are far from him. And only in that protected space, can people open their hearts to hear from Him.

Blessings,

Pastor Ed

Cycle of Prayer

(from the transcript of Ed’s 9/4/16 message) 

The Cycle of Prayer consists of four elements that are essential for an effective prayer life. And those four things are...

- PRAY

- TRUST

- RELEASE

- PEACE

What that means is that, first, we must actually act. We must pray. Prayer is an actual thing that we do. And this act of prayer begins the cycle.

But prayer isn't just words. It's not an incantation, like in a Harry Potter movie. 

Prayer is more like a spiritual trust fall. We bring our petitions to God, not in an effort to get him to do something, but as a recognition that we understand that he's in control.

The more we do this, the less God seems like a genie, or a vending machine, and the more he seems like a father. 

So, first we pray, then we trust.

And this trust can't just be an intellectual trust. We must respond appropriately. That's part of trust. If we pray, and we feel called to do something, we need to do it. That's the trust fall.

And when we do that, just like in a real trust fall, we release the outcomes to others. We close our eyes and take a leap of faith, trusting that God's got our back. 

But in order to do that, we have to stop thinking that the end results are on us. God uses us, but HE produces the outcomes.

That's why Paul said, "I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow.” (1 Corinthians 3:6)

We must trust and respond, but God makes it happen. We leave the saving to God - we just show up.

So, we pray, trust, and release, and as a consequence, God gives us peace.

We've come to him in trust, we've responded, we've released the outcomes to him, and now God gives us peace, because we've done all he asked, and we can know that he's got it from here.

And then we start all over again.

Pray, trust, release, peace.

(And here’s some additional insight for today)

The more we pray, trust, and release, the more we begin to align with the will of God, and the more likely we are to pray for the things that were already on his mind.

God will begin to make your heart break for what breaks his heart, and he will remake you into the person who can love them into a relationship with Jesus.

What’s really awesome about this is that it makes interceding for another soul the greatest possible act of love. It means you are willing to be remade to love them better.

God does the remaking; he does the softening. But he still brings people to himself through us. And if we aren't preparing ourselves for them, where will they go? He doesn't soften their hearts because we ask him to, he softens them because we came to him in the first place.

Then he gives us what we need to walk them in.

Prayer Challenge

Something happens when we pray. 

If you’ve been praying awhile, you know that your prayers often fall infuriatingly flat. 

In fact, I have a relative who prays diligently, day-and-night, and she recently told me that she must be cursed because whatever she prays for, the opposite always seems to happen.

But just because we don’t get what we pray for, doesn’t mean that nothing happens.

If we pray with purpose and on purpose - especially when we pray for others, like our family, friends, neighbors, co-workers and classmates - we will experience something. Stuff happens.

- Our interest piques (people become more interesting)

- Our investment grows (people get more of our time)

- Our influence increases (people begin to listen to us)

- Our attitude improves (we enjoy people more)

- Our assumptions change (we judge people less)

- Our apathy disintegrates (we lean into people’s lives)

We become the kind of people that are on mission with God; the kind of folks that God enlists to lead people onto the Way of Jesus. We develop empathy and compassion and intentionality in our relationships with others.

And this is why we’re called to pray for others.

So here’s your challenge for this week:

Pray behind three people’s backs.

Take your noticing skills to the next level. Notice three people (can be the same ones from last week, or totally different folks) and secretly pray for them. Don’t ask. Don’t pray out loud. Instead, before or after you encounter them, silently pray for them, perhaps in reference to something you’ve noticed. 

For example, let’s say you notice a mother at the store, and her kids are acting up. Pray that her kids will behave, that she will have patience and peace, and that people will not call her out for just trying to do her best as a mother.

Or perhaps you notice someone who is working hard, maybe on a road crew, and they look exhausted. Pray that they will be safe and have the strength to make it through the day. Then pray that they get good treatment on the job, and good rest and support from home.

See how this works?

Notice three and bless them. Go!

you are the choir

Some churches have identified choirs. But when Quest gathers to worship, the Quest congregation is the choir.

Choirs tend to perform for audiences. The Quest choir/congregation is no different.

The only difference is that some choirs understand their audience to be the gathered congregation; the Quest choir's audience is God.

When we gather to worship on Sundays, we are all performing for an audience of One. It's as though we - congregation/choir and worship team - are all on a stage and God is in the audience. In fact, God is not in the audience, rather God is the audience.

So sing out! God is our audience! Make a joyful noise!

- Brian McMillan

visit us at Quest online

Peace be with you

Last Sunday, in order to better understand Jesus' words "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God," we looked at Paul's letter to his friend Philemon. (you can hear Ed's entire message HERE). Thanks to Kurt Willems for his excellent podcast on this topic, which gave me some great ideas and insight (hear Kurt's podcast "Paul the Peacemaker" HERE).

Philemon is a perfect example of how to be a proactive peacemaker rather than a reactive peacekeeper. And in studying this letter (and other related Scripture), we uncovered seven specific lessons about peacemaking, which I have been asked to share on this blog.

PEACEMAKING:

Seven simple lessons from Philemon

Earn the right to speak peace.

You don't get to just speak into someone's life by virtue of your position. Trust is earned. Be a co-laborer. Be a brother in arms. Get in the trenches. Then you can speak.

Defer to the authority of Jesus.

Jesus isn't the only consideration, but regardless of whether the other party respects Jesus' authority, always make it clear that you do. You're responsible to a higher law.

Stand against injustice.

When something is just plain wrong, don't be afraid to call it like you see it - even if that might put you in jeopardy. Don't be foolhardy, but always stand for justice.

Level the playing field.

When it comes to spiritual matters, we are all equal. We are all brothers and sisters, because we are all children of God. Every one of us was made in his image. God does not play favorites.

Make room for self-discovery.

It is always better if someone figures out the right thing to do on their own. You can point them in the right direction, but change of heart is a personal matter. You can only lead them to the water. You cannot force them to drink it.

Be willing to take a hit.

Put your money where your mouth is. If you are asking others to bend, be willing to bend yourself. A peacemaker is a participant - be more of a coach than an armchair quarterback.

Know when to quit.

When you've done all you can and there's still no peace, wash your hands of it, and move on. You cannot make peace by sheer force of will. Speak what you know is true, do what you know is right, and pray that God will move. 

That's what it means to be a peacemaker. And blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

Peace!

Pastor Ed

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Series Title: BLESSED

Message Title: peacemakers: part one

Date: 6/26/16

Main Passages: Matthew 5:9, Romans 12:18, Philemon

Some questions for reflection or group study (or please comment on them, below):

• When have you had to be a peacemaker? 
• Have you ever been a peacekeeper instead? What was different?
• Which of the seven lessons are hardest for you? Easiest?
• How could you change to be more of a person of peace?

on the whole purity thing...

This blog will reference last Sunday's message, so if, for whatever reason, you didn't hear it, you might want to listen to that first... (click HERE to listen)

In this message I was addressing the dangers of imagining purity as something we possess and lose, or something we lose and regain.

This sets up a false dichotomy between the pure and the impure - making everyone either a pristine virgin or a common whore - a saint or a reprobate. And that false dichotomy establishes an unhealthy culture of shame, guilt, and fear.

We want to make this all about what we do or don't do, but it's just not about that. Purity, holiness, righteousness - these things are, by definition, unattainable. The whole purpose of the Mosaic Law was to prove that very thing. And Jesus says it's not just about what you do, but rather who you are, how you think, and where your heart is. So, consequently, purity is something none of us possess and none of us can achieve. Chasing after it or trying to preserve it is a fool's errand.

However, repentance is not. Repentance rests at the core of the gospel. It's central to the good news of Jesus.

Repentance occurs once in order to change our relationship with our Creator, and occurs again, continually, for the rest of our lives, in order to change our relationship with ourselves.

The first one - the repentance that changes our relationship with the Creator - is called "justification," and it occurs the moment we recognize that our relationship with God is broken, that Jesus made a way to repair that relationship, and that we must decide to embark on that way. It only needs to happen once, because it's a cognitive shift; it's a recognition of who you are in relation to God, and once you recognize that, you don't really need to revisit it.

We call this "justification by faith," because it springs from our faith and trust in a God who loves us and wishes to be in relationship with us.

Justification bridges the gap between fallen man and holy God by offering forgiveness and reconciliation, and it happens instantaneously, as a consequence of our initial act of repentance. Repentance means "to change direction" and "to have a change of heart," and this change imputes "righteousness" or "purity" to us. This is the only way you can get it - this is the only way you can "get right with God" - you must decide to change direction from your path to his.

The second one - the repentance that changes our relationship with ourselves - is called "sanctification," and it occurs as often as necessary, as long as we continue to follow The Way of Jesus. Justification repairs our relationship with God, but it doesn't necessarily repair US. But, when we are justified, we also receive the Helper that Jesus promised. We somehow receive the Holy Spirit, who will guide us as we walk The Way set in front of us by Jesus. Sanctification is the process by which He does that.

This doesn't make us more pure. That's already done. Instead, sanctification makes us better citizens of Jesus' kingdom. As we seek to live out Jesus' commands to love God and love our neighbors, the Helper leads, guides, and convicts, so that we can make course corrections - so that we can repent - and we can become more and more what God originally intended. We can become less and less broken, and more and more human. We can repair our broken relationship with ourselves.

And eternal life, the abundant life that Jesus promises us, springs from those repaired relationships - the relationship with our Creator and the relationship with our humanity.

So, if you haven't already, decide to follow Jesus. Then stop worrying about every little thing. You're already pure. Jesus saw to that. Now, just live.

Blessings!

Pastor Ed

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Series Title: BLESSED

Message Title: selfless (pure in heart)

Date: 6/19/16

Main Passages: Mt 5:8

Some questions for reflection or group study (or please comment on them, below):

• Why do you suppose people think purity is dependent on them?
• Why do you think it can't be earned? Does it make you happy or angry?
• In your own words, what's the difference between justification & sanctification.
• Where do you see yourself? Are you justified? Sanctified? Why does it matter?

Lord, have mercy

Whenever we talk about getting right with God, there has to be a component of humility. You can't enter into a right relationship with your Creator unless you recognize what that relationship IS. You aren't fishing buddies with God, but you are known to him; and if you're truly seeking, he'll also be known to you.

But in that knowledge, there must be humility. You must, at some point, come to the realization that, while God loves you, he probably has to choke down some nasty stuff to do so. Yes, God delights in his children, but we are, without question, a messy bunch. We can be hard to love.

And if we don't get there - if we aren't humble - if we find ourselves thinking, "Hey, I think I'm doing pretty well. I bet it's easy for God to love me," God will humble us. I promise.

If I've said this once, I've said it a hundred times: the opposite of faith is not doubt, it's certainty. Be careful with your confidence - the confidence that God loves you is worlds away from the confidence that he SHOULD.

Jesus told a story about two guys who demonstrated this truth: *

Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.

The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: "God, I thank you that I am not like other people - robbers, evildoers, adulterers - or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get."

But the tax collector stood at a distance. He wouldn't even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, "God, have mercy on me, a sinner."

I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.

If we can truly understand this - if we can see the breadth of God's mercy in our own lives - then that's the first step toward being merciful to others. It may even be a pre-requisite.

God, grant me mercy, and help me to always be humble enough to recognize that I require it. 

Amen.
Pastor Ed

*Luke 18:9-14

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Series Title: BLESSED
Message Title: merciful
Date: 6/12/16
Main Passages: Mt 5:7, Jas 2:13

Some questions for reflection or group study (or please comment on them, below):

• If you've ever known someone like the Pharisee in the parable, what were they like? 
• If you've ever know someone like the tax collector, what were they like? 
• In what ways have you been like the Pharisee? The tax collector? 
• What's the difference between receiving mercy and showing mercy to others? 

The race

GUEST POST:

Pastor Ed has pointed out that "to sin" in its original meaning is to miss the mark or fall short of the goal. If I have a Fitbit goal of 10,000 steps per day, am I sinning when I only walk 9,990 steps?

It matters who sets the mark. Our standards are not God's standards. Our goals are not God's goals. This is certainly true at the starting line. 

It is an interesting sort of race, discipleship. We start with only our own vague notions of the length, direction, and finish line. We learn a little more about where we are going as we run. More importantly, we learn about how to run as we run. Most importantly, we learn about who we are running with, none less than Lord Jesus Christ.

There will be obstacles in the road and people who will try to discourage us, even try to stop us. But, do not stop! Stay on the way! When the people of Israel faced opposition, Moses said, "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you. He will never leave you nor forsake you." *

Let us aim to follow Paul's example, to run a good race. Believing that he was near the end of his earthly life, he wrote to Timothy, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith." **

Doug Picirillo

* Deuteronomy 31:6
** 2 Timothy 4:7

Memorial

I've never been a fan of patriotic church services. I'm a nine-year Army vet, so I don't have a problem with patriotic stuff in general, just patriotic church services.

Don't get me wrong. I love my country. I can't imagine wanting to live somewhere else, even during an election cycle. But it seems like church and the flag are strange bedfellows. There's something about turning the other cheek and loving your enemies and making disciples of all nations that seems to stand in the face of nationalism.

So you will never see videos of flying jets and rolling tanks and waving flags and marching ranks of soldiers at Quest Church. However, I have no problem with honoring soldiers. I'm fine with recognizing the vets around Veteran's Day, and I don't mind honoring my fallen comrades on Memorial Day. These days are not about glorifying war or conflict or even soldiering - they are about remembering.

And perhaps the most Christian response to war would be to memorialize it. How does the saying go? Forget your past and you're doomed to repeat it, right? Maybe the best thing we can do, as Christians, regarding war, is to remember it. Remember those who fought. Remember those who died. Remember why we went, what we did, and what it accomplished. And then vow to never go to that same place again.

So this year, as you're enjoying your long weekend, flipping burgers and maybe getting in eighteen holes, remember that, in order for you to have the freedom to enjoy this land and this day, someone - many someones - had to give their lives. Don't let it get you down. Don't let it spoil your fun. But don't forget.

Blessings!

Pastor Ed

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Series Title: BLESSED

Message Title: mourners

Date: 5/29/16

Main Passages: Matthew 5:4, Romans 12:15, Lamentations

Some questions for reflection or group study (or please comment on them, below):

• How do you think patriotism and Christianity interact? 
• Why might we struggle pledging allegiance to both Jesus & the flag? 
• Remembering is a big deal to the church. Can you think of examples?
• So is forgiveness. How can remembering get in the way of forgiving?

Oops.

After this Sunday, you might have come to the realization that we did beatitude three out of order. I'd love to say that it was completely intentional, but it wasn't. When I started working on this series, I just started plugging the different beatitudes into the different weeks of the series, and I accidentally got two and three turned around. My bad.

However, it ended up working out. Now, Brian, who is sitting in for me this Sunday at both Quest and The Anchor, will be sharing "Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth," and next week, I'll be sharing "Blessed are the mourners, for they will be comforted." Which means that "Blessed are the mourners" ends up falling on Memorial Day weekend. So, not intentional, but super appropriate.

By the way, don't worry; I'm not going anywhere. I'm just preaching this Sunday at Iowa City Church of Christ, the church where Kim and I got baptized, that we helped to build, and that supports us financially every month. I'm going to preach on dying to self (which you guys have already heard), and I'm planning to give them an update on both Quest and The Anchor, so they know exactly what they are supporting.

So pray for me as I'm away, but also pray for Brian, and for a great turn out at both locations. You will be blessed. I promise. 

See you next week!

Pastor Ed

Are you sure?

God bless America.

We've all said it. We've all sung it. It's just part of being a citizen of this country, and it's a big part of our culture and history. If you're like me, you grew up saying the Pledge of Allegiance in school, and really early on, you learned the daunting strains and complicated lyrics of "The Star-Spangled Banner." I was raised a patriot, and I'm a nine-year US Army veteran. I love living in this country, and I feel very fortunate to have been born here.

So, asking God to bless America seems perfectly natural. But is that what we're asking for, or are we actually assuming we're already blessed? Are we really just saying, "God, keep blessing America?"

And if not - if we're actually asking for a fresh blessing for our nation - have you ever wondered what that would mean for America? Are we sure that's even what we want?

What if the things we think are great about America are not the kind of things God blesses? Read Matthew 5:1-12. If that's what God blesses, do we really want God to bless America? Or would we rather have it just like it is? Would a nation that fits into the beatitudes be a nation we would fight for?

Think about it...

Pastor Ed

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Series Title: BLESSED
Message Title: broken
Date: 5/15/16
Main Passages: Matthew 5:1-3
Some questions for reflection or group study (or please comment on them, below):

• Do we think God loves America more than other countries? Why or why not?

• Are we called to rugged, American individualism and self-reliance, or to something else? 

• How would a nation that fit into the beatitudes even work in today's world?

Just do it!

Training is tough.

In today's modern world of 24-hour digital connectedness, where everyone has a personal computer in their pocket, you can receive a wide variety of training in a wide variety of ways. Or so it seems.

You can screen out best practices from a blog. You can purchase online education for almost any undertaking. Youtube has videos demonstrating everything from playing the guitar to repairing a carburetor, and google has pointers for every pursuit from breastfeeding your baby to house-training your pets. You can find twenty solutions to any problem, as long as you can articulate it and google it. Information is everywhere, and it can be in your hands at the speed of light.

But information is not the same as training. 

Despite the nearly omniscient nature of the internet, I think something often gets lost in translation. There's every sort of learning available on the web, but I think real training in most areas still requires three components that the internet struggles to provide: experience, accountability, and oversight.

In most cases, these components require real people in real relationships. In most cases, you can learn ABOUT a skill by watching others do it, but, in order to LEARN a skill, you have to actually PRACTICE it. Maybe hundreds of times. Maybe thousands.

It's no different walking the Way of Jesus. In order to learn and grow, you have to do. And everybody and their brother has an idea of what that should look like. Everybody has a plan or a program. But talk is cheap. And time is short. And there's just no substitute for doing.

Like the great angst-ridden, teen-aged philosopher, Holden Caulfield, I'm not a big fan of "phonies." But, sometimes ya' gotta fake it 'til ya' make it. Sometimes, you just have to figure out what needs done, and go do it.

Fortunately, the way this whole Jesus thing is set up is that you don't have to do it alone. You should always have experience, accountability, and oversight on the Way of Jesus, because they’re built right into the system. It's called the church. And if we’re doing it right, church should be the perfect example of training done right. But you can’t do it by watching, and you can't do it yourself. You can’t do it in a book or a pew or a laptop. That's not the way it works. You have to do. You have to try. You have to go. Together.

Just do it!

Pastor Ed

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Series Title: 7 THINGS

Message Title: God isn't gullible

Date: 5/8/16

Main Passages: Romans 12:1

Some questions for reflection or group study (or please comment on them, below):

• What is most unnerving about the fact that you can't fool God?
• What makes you most nervous about following Jesus?
• In what area do you feel least qualified in following? Love? Grow? Go?
• What's the main thing that's keeping you from truly following?

Good news!

So, last week at Quest, we talked about how our God is so great and powerful that we can't fully know him (if you missed it, you can listen HERE). But can we know him enough? Can we understand the Creator of the universe well enough to grasp what our relationship with him should be? 

We talk about "being saved" and "repentance" and "The Way of Jesus," but what do those things really mean? Can we understand them in a practical way? Can we truly know how to respond to a God who is so huge and powerful, but who also insists that he is present with us whenever we gather? What do we do with that?

One guy who did a really good job of wrestling with it is Paul. He was a smart guy, and he worked his way through these ideas, inspired by the Holy Spirit, and fortunately for us, he wrote it all down in a series of letters to the very first churches and their leaders.

One of those letters was written to the churches in Rome, Italy, which was, at that time, the central hub of civilization. And there is a long-standing tradition, in the church, to grapple with salvation and what exactly we are saved from, by working our way through the Roman letter.

This is often accomplished with something called "The Romans Road" - a series of verses in the Roman letter, which, when read in order, should open up the good news of Jesus Christ in a clear and understandable way. I have put together my own version of the Romans Road for your consideration, and you can download it HERE.

Blessings!
Pastor Ed
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Series Title: 7 THINGS
Message Title: God isn't simple
Date: 4/17/16
Main Passages: Job 38:4-7

Some questions for reflection or group study (or please comment on them, below):

• If you've ever tried to "share your faith" what was the most difficult part?
• When do you think it's appropriate to do so?
• Would you be more or less likely to share if you had a resource like this? Why?
• What do you think is more important, conversion or discipleship? Explain.

Did you read the directions?

Have you ever heard the world "Bible" used as an acronym? 

Have you ever heard it said, “B-I-B-L-E stands for Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth?”

When my kids were enrolled in Christian school, I heard this quite a bit, and, back in the day, there was even a Burlap to Cashmere song with that title. That would be great, right? It would be great to have a basic instruction manual to get us out of this life alive, wouldn't it? 

I see little handbooks all over the Christian bookstores that seem to take this stance on the Bible. But is that what God's given us? Is that what the Bible is?

If it is, that certainly would make life a lot simpler.  If we could just have a little glossary where we could look up a problem, then follow the glossary listing to the appropriate page, and we'd find simple instructions on how to handle every situation.

     - Depressed? See page 1042.

     - Child misbehaving? Page 619.

     - Wife not being submissive enough? Follow the diagram on page 196.

     - Bit of leprosy? See figure 11b, page 746.

     - Being overrun by pagan hordes? See pages 593-615.

     - Evangelizing? Consult flowchart, page 1267, entitled “Soul Winning for Beginners.”

That would sure simplify things a mite. But if you've ever cracked open a Bible, you know that's not what’s there. Every time you read the thing, it seems to be saying something different to you. It’s so rich and lyrical that it speaks to you differently depending on the day of the week, the level of your research, state of your mind, and the condition of your soul. It describes itself as “living and active” for a reason.

It’s both simple and complicated, which implies that the one about whom it speaks is likewise both simple and complicated, both unfathomable and understandable. Which is why we can view him with both awe and love - both fear and longing - which seems, at least to me, like the perfect qualifications for worship.

Blessings!
Pastor Ed

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Series Title: 7 THINGS
Message Title: God isn't political
Date: 4/10/16
Main Passages: Matthew 17:24-27

Some questions for reflection or group study (or please comment on them, below):
- How much do you think God gets involved in the affairs of man?

- What does it look like for God to respond to our prayers?

- What do you believe about the Bible? Is it without error? Is it written by men? God? Both?

- Why do you think the Bible isn't more specific? Why does it seem contradictory?

Future Shock

We've been talking about how God isn't looking for excuses to punish you or reasons to weed you out, but instead, he wants to help you become a good citizen of the kingdom. So, if God is more interested in what we're becoming than he is about who we are and what we've done, then maybe he's just generally more interested in our future than our past? Maybe he's less interested in our record - how we've responded to things previously - than he is about how we respond from here on out. 

If that's true, part of me says, "That's great! It's all about what's next! It's all about potential!" But another part of me says, "Oh, dear. What if I don't do any better than I have? What if my future is just as messed up as my past?"

Good question. But maybe a better way to think about it is to remember that Jesus didn't just stroll into your life once you noticed him. You didn't call him out of retirement. The reason you noticed him is because he's been there all along; you just didn't notice him until you figured out what to look for. He's been at work in your life, and a huge part of your development as a Jesus follower - as a disciple - is noticing that. The first big step in your sanctification process - your God-directed forward movement - is this awareness that your future matters, both to you and to him.

With that understanding in your back pocket, the rest of your life is all about a kind of four-step process: engage - respond - correct - repeat. Prayerfully step out. Respond to things as best you can. Based on results, make prayerful corrections. Then do it all again. And again. If you keep this up, God will use you, grow you, and bless you.

It's not easy, but it's awesome.

Blessings!
Pastor Ed

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Series Title: 7 THINGS
Message Title: God's not exclusive
Date: 4/3/16
Main Passages: Galatians 3:28

Some questions for reflection or group study (or please comment on them, below):

• In what ways have you felt excluded - in life - in the church?
• Does the idea that God is "inclusive" make you uncomfortable? If so, how? If not, why not?
• What -isms have you struggled with receiving or giving (racism? sexism? ageism? etc.)?
• How has your church family helped you with any of this?